


The Little Bookshop

by soul_writerr



Series: Rafael's Bookshop [1]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: ADA Sonny Carisi, Bookshop Owner Rafael Barba, Bookstores, First Meetings, M/M, Meet-Cute, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:15:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22775494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soul_writerr/pseuds/soul_writerr
Summary: Rafael was very proud of his little bookshop; with books crammed and piled everywhere, from the floor to the ceiling, the place had become his home. One particular evening, when Rafael was mostly done for the day and right before closing, a tall, blue-eyed and dimpled smile man walked into the shop, and then Rafael couldn't stop thinking about him.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Series: Rafael's Bookshop [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1641682
Comments: 26
Kudos: 85





	The Little Bookshop

**Author's Note:**

> After writing so many married barisi fics, I wanted to write another meet-cute. So the other day I went to the public library and got to thinking about Rafael being a librarian, and from there I decided that once he left the DA's office, he took the money he'd normally spend on suits and bought a little shop in Brooklyn, and so bookshop owner!Rafael was born!
> 
> Enjoy!

Rafael was very proud of his little bookshop; he smiled as he dusted off the shelves, he whistled a tune as he placed books where they belonged. When he retired from the DA’s office, it never crossed his mind that he’d find happiness in a little corner in Brooklyn.

But then again, books had always been an escape for him. It was where he sought validation, where he found kindred-spirits, fictional people that felt real to him. He learned about empathy the same way he learned about wars, he read about star-crossed lovers and social injustices.

So the feeling of belonging in that little shop, with books crammed and piled everywhere, from the floor to the ceiling, was the same he felt back when he’d walk into One Hogan Place - if not lighter, more peaceful and less ulcer-indulcing. 

Once he finished his chores for the day, he still had forty minutes before closing, so Rafael kicked back in his favorite armchair by the window to people-watch, a bag of peanuts in hand and a cup of tea on the small round table beside him. 

It was only five minutes later that Rafael caught sight of him across the street, waiting for the traffic lights to turn green before crossing. He was tall, his long stride kept him well ahead of everyone else, and he was wearing a dark three-piece suit that reminded Rafael of his old days as an ADA.

As he crossed to the other side, the man turned left and started coming towards the direction of the shop, and Rafael couldn’t take his eyes off of him. His skin was fair, but there was a pink blush high on his cheeks. Despite the low light of the sidewalk, Rafael could see that his hair was peppered with grey, but that didn’t age him at all.

He looked young, in a way. There was a bouncing energy around him and a bright sparkle to his eyes that made him look youthful. Rafael never thought he’d ever find himself describing a man as pretty, but this man - and now he was just outside the bookshop, looking up at the sign - was _devastatingly_ pretty. 

Rafael heard the bell above the door ring when the man pushed it open, and the gust of autumn air that blew into the warm shop was unforgiving, but Rafael’s eyes were trained on his, and how _absurdly_ blue they looked. 

“Hello,” Rafael greeted, as a good shop owner, friendly and welcoming. “How can I help you?” 

“Hi,” he flashed a quick smile, just enough for Rafael to catch the deep dimple on his cheek. “I’m looking for a book in Italian.” 

Rafael put his snack aside and stood up, chuckling lightly. “A book in Italian,” he repeated. “Nothing more specific?”

It wasn’t unusual for a customer to come in with a vague description of what they wanted, or even no idea at all, but it never failed to amuse him. 

“Yeah, I’m Italian,” he said sheepishly, running a hand down his very nice tie. “And I wanted go get an Italian book for my girlfriend.” 

Something inside Rafael fizzled out mildly, but he nodded. “A romance, maybe? Do you have a preference for a translation or an Italian classic?” 

“Uh, not really,” he hesitated before following Rafael to the foreign languages section. “She likes fluffy stuff, so anything like that.” 

Rafael quickly scanned the shelves. The Italian selection wasn’t the largest - Italian wasn’t as sought after as Spanish -, but he was proud of his careful curation. 

“The Betrothed, a classic set in 1620,” Rafael said, pulling the copy and handing it to the other man. “Star-crossed lovers who run away to be together, with a twist.” 

“1620?,” he pulled a face, then handed the book back. “Historical novels aren’t really her thing.” 

“Okay,” Rafael took out another book. “How about the translation to De Profundis by Oscar Wilde? Very deep and emotional.” 

The man smiled softly, looking down at the cover. “Isn’t that the book he wrote to his male lover while he was in prison?”

“What, is your girlfriend homophobic?,” he challenged with light humor. 

“She seems okay enough with my bisexuality,” the man shrugged, then put the book back. “Do you have anything set in the 2000s?”

Rafael tutted. “No classics then, got it.”

Most of the Italian books he had were, indeed, classics, but he’d recently ordered a few of the novels that had made bestseller lists in the last few years. He pulled out a book that had an ice cream on the cover and considered it before he turned it to his client.

“This one is a translation as well, but it’s set in Italy,” Rafael said. “Beautiful scenery, wistful, and romance that sneaks up on you.”

He watched as the man took the book and turned it in his hand, reading the summary in the back before nodding, seemingly satisfied. 

“Yeah, I think this sounds good,” he grinned. “The cover looks cute too, even though I know not to judge a book by its cover,” the man chuckled, shooting Rafael a playful wink. “I’ll take it.”

Rafael smiled at him. “Perfect.”

The tall, blue-eyed man followed him to the check-out counter, where he immediately pulled out a card from his wallet and started bouncing slightly on the ball of his feet. Rafael couldn’t help but compare him to the adorable children that came into the shop looking for colorful books.

Rafael processed the purchase as the man took him in, watching him unabashedly. 

“Have we met before?,” he suddenly asked, head tilted in consideration.

“I don’t think so,” he said with a side smirk. “I’d remember.” 

The man ducked his head, looking embarrassed. “Sorry. I just changed jobs, faces are starting to blur a little.”

“Hm, I think whatever you’re implying there is a bit offensive, but I’ll let it slide if you purchase a card to help the school my mother runs,” Rafael said lightly, pointing at the display of postcards and greeting cards by the wall.

His mother and her students drew the cards themselves, and all proceeds went to maintaining the school’s art program up and running. 

“You’re a good businessman, I’ll give you that,” the tall man laughed. “I’ll choose two, and I get my new boss a bottle of wine to go with it.”

Rafael laughed as well. “New job and already sucking up to the boss? Smart.” 

The man shrugged. “More like politics.”

“I definitely get that,” Rafael snorted, shaking his head as he remembered his former job. 

The man chose two cards as Rafael wrapped up the book in a nice bag with a red bow on the handle, tying it carefully. “Here you go. I hope your girlfriend likes it.” 

“Thanks, this looks great,” he beamed, picking up the bag and his postcards after paying. “Have a good evening.”

Rafael watched him go with a strange sense of loss that followed him home even as he closed the bookshop and braved the New York weather, the cold sipping into his coat and making his muscles tighten. 

He thought of blue eyes and cute dimples the whole way home, then the whole way back into the shop the next morning, where he hoped he’d see the stranger again someday.

* * *

It was a week before the tall man finally returned. It would have been unrealistic to say that Rafael didn’t remember him or what he came in for then; he’d thought of little else since that day. 

Rafael was going through his finances in that particular evening, relieved and proud of the growing profit the shop had been making, when the bell announced the new arrival. 

“Hi,” the man greeted, looking a little hurried as he quickly crossed the distance to the counter. “I’d like to return this.”

Rafael frowned down at the book the man placed in front of him. It was the Italian translation he’d sold him just the other day. “Oh, your girlfriend didn’t like it?”

The man shrugged, the corners of his mouth twitching down. “She broke up with me before I could give it to her.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Rafael offered genuinely. “Too bad for her though, right? She’s short of a boyfriend and a good book now.”

“I guess,” he smiled tentatively at Rafael. 

As Rafael processed the return, the man looked at Rafael, _really_ looked, and he saw the exact moment recognition flooded his pretty face. 

“Wait,” he said suddenly in a gasp. “Aren’t you Rafael Barba, the former ADA who let a perp choke him in court?”

Rafael couldn’t help but laugh lightly. “I’m glad my reputation precedes me. But how do you know about that?”

He smiled openly now, a bright smile that made his eyes go squinty as he held out a hand. “ADA Sonny Carisi, nice to meet you. I studied some of your cases in Law School.” 

Rafael took the offered hand in a firm grip and shook it. “Ah, a fellow prosecutor. My pleasure. So the new job you mentioned is being an ADA then?” 

“Yeah, started about a month ago,” Sonny said with a lopsided grin. “I used to be a Detective with the Special Victims Unit.” 

Rafael’s mouth fell open slightly, but he quickly snapped it shut. A Detective turned ADA? Well, he was officially doomed now because the most handsome man he had ever met was apparently also one of the most intelligent. “That’s really impressive.” 

Sonny waved a hand then ducked his head. “I don’t even have an office yet.”

“You’ll get there,” Rafael smiled, and handed Sonny his money back. “I’m sorry about your girlfriend.”

He sighed. “I guess I’ve been lying to myself about things being okay,” Sonny shrugged. “I know I’ve been busy and had to cancel our last two dates, but I told her it’d be crazy for a while once I made the change, you know? I thought she understood.”

Rafael nodded, biting his tongue. He wanted to tell Sonny that she _should_ have understood, that she should have been a little more supportive of such a massive change. She should have been proud of him. He wanted to say all those things, but instead he said, “Would you like to go for a cup of coffee?”

Sonny blinked at him, clearly surprised, then smiled. “Really? Yeah, yeah, I’d like that.”

Rafael smiled. “I know just the place.”

A week later, Sonny came back looking for a book for himself, then three days later he said he wanted a gift for his former Captain. Then the very next day, he brought Rafael coffee and sat down to chat about the book he’d just finished reading.

A month later, he no longer needed excuses to see Rafael. He became comfortable enough to just waltz into the shop with a beaming smile, walk right around the counter to probe at whatever Rafael was doing, and he’d stick around until closing time. 

A year later, the bookshop was Sonny’s safe haven just as much as it was Rafael’s, and he knew the inventory like the back of his hand. He’d bring case files and sit in the armchair by the window, working on cases as Rafael worked around the shop.

And just like that, the little bookshop became even smaller, Sonny’s warm presence, honest smile and bright eyes taking up just enough space. 

**Author's Note:**

> The book Sonny ended up buying (then returning) was Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch, which is next on my reading list. Also, this is a meet-cute fic, not a get together fic, but you know me and my tendency to turn fics into series, so if you're interested, I could eventually add something about them eventually becoming a couple. 
> 
> Let me know what you think of chilled out, bookworm Rafael! And don't forget to leave a kudo if you enjoyed this MWAH <3


End file.
